Rain Will Make the Flowers Grow
by Bardlover
Summary: GeorgeAlicia companion piece to my RonHermione story, Easy. Warning: much angst lies ahead! Other couples include RLNT and RWHG. Future fic.
1. Chapter 1

Rain Will Make the Flowers Grow

Disclaimer: I own no part of the Harry Potter series. That's JKR. I also don't own the musical Les Miserables, which is where I borrowed the title from.

A/N: Well the epilogue I'm trying to write to Seven Deadly Sins (RLNT) isn't coming out, but I promise I will write it! And Power of the No will come after exams.

THIS IS A COMPANION TO MY RON/HERMIONE FIC EASY. CAN BE READ SEPARATELY, BUT BEST READ WITH IT.

Dedicated to my beta jwoods471, who is not feeling very well right now due to the stress of finals. Also, I convinced her that George/Alicia is a good ship.

Chapter 1 "Exposition"

George Weasley knew he shouldn't begrudge fate, but he couldn't help it. Life just seemed too unfair. He had had so much: a great family, a thriving business, a steady girl, and good friends.

Then Voldemort came.

Voldemort had always been a vague threat, never one George took seriously. That was in the past, from when he was quite small. Voldemort wasn't supposed to come back. Sure, Harry had said he had, but that didn't have to affect him personally, right?

Wrong. Fate had just been dealing him good cards. But that changed one night. All of it in one night.

He had stayed at the joke shop late that night, for he and Fred had had some petty fight earlier that evening. He'd even skived off dinner at the Burrow. It ended up saving his life.

His mother, Bill, Fleur, Charlie, Fred, all gone. Ginny had been off tailing Harry, Ron, and Hermione (who were themselves trailing Voldemort's past in search of horcruxes). His dad had been at work late due to the stress of the war. Percy, the prick, was later revealed as being a Death Eater. Whether or not he had been under the Imperius Curse didn't even bother George. He was just scum.

So George, Ron, Arthur, and Ginny were the only Weasleys left. It had been heartbreaking. But Alicia had stuck with him. Alicia was understanding and compassionate. She lost family members too, but not someone as close as a twin. So they had grown closer if anything.

Then Ginny had gone completely bonkers, no thanks to Harry's false nobility. Then George had suffered from depression as well. It was hard having to depend on his youngest brother and live without a twin to finish his sentences.

So they had taken a break from one another for a while. Two, three weeks? George couldn't remember. Then he had gone to check up on her and they reverted back to gentle yet insistent kisses and stolen glances. Then they took the big step. Unbelievably, they hadn't gotten that intimate in their relationship beforehand. She wanted to move slowly and George was willing to agree. She was worth the wait, after all. She wasn't like the other girls he had dated.

It was the next morning when George realized his heart was no longer his. He woke up, wondering if it was but a dream and found her beside him, her hair fanned out on the pillow. He felt his heart fill with a completely new emotion—one that warmed him but pained him all at the same time. It took him five minutes to give it a name: love.

It had scared him to death to admit it. And when she woke up and smiled at him, he was even more terrified. He loved her. He loved every bit of her. He didn't care that she favored the Harpies over any other team or that she (for some inane reason) preferred vanilla over chocolate. He didn't mind that she pressed her cold feet up against him in her sleep or that she liked to sleep with the light on. No, all that mattered was that she was near.

But George had once heard that the course of true love never did run smooth, and the idiom proved itself true. Family tensions arose at the Weasley flat, and George broke one of their dates. Little did he know that Alicia wasn't as secure as she presented herself.

They had had a nasty row. She accused him of using her, of lying to her, of neglecting her, of under appreciating her. Later he realized most of it was true. At the time, however, he'd thrown back far too many insults in her face. She did the leaving. For weeks he only saw her at St. Mungo's.

He missed her. He missed her easy smile, her soft laughter, her enthusiasm. He missed her kisses, he missed her caresses, but most of all he missed her love—not just the physical kind but the emotional as well.

He knew that he had screwed up royally. He had to salvage what they had left of a relationship before it was too late. But he wasn't sure she'd give him another chance. After all, he wasn't exactly a great prospect anymore. He was just George Weasley, poor, depressed, and broken. But he was the same George Weasley that loved Alicia Spinnet. And that should account for something, shouldn't it?

He decided to test out the Gryffindor courage and try to make amends with her. Hell, he'd even grovel if it got her back in his life. Love was something he couldn't afford to lose. Love was all he had.

A/N: I know, talk about ANGST! Sorry. If you read Easy, you see it'll continue for a while. These two have a lot of things to work through, both personally and as a couple.

Sorry for the narrative. If you didn't particularly like it, I'm sorry. (Thinks of beta, who is probably thinking of throwing something at me.) Next chapter will most likely be mostly (or all, like this one) narrative, but from then on, we should see a healthy balance.

A note about updates: I have finals next week, then I go home for the summer. Then I have to ship my computer off for a few weeks for a new keypad, since my backspace key broke off. The updates may be a little slow, but they'll come.

Thanks to my beta, jwoods471. Sorry about all the narrative, girl. Beta's Note: Actually the narrative didn't bother me that much in this story. I don't know why, since it usually does but it interested me even though I've always said that I didn't like this pairing. Just like with Lupin/Tonks, you are changing my views of the couple.


	2. A Little More Exposition

Rain Will Make the Flowers Grow

Disclaimer: Still not mine.

A/N: Thanks to all of you that sent me messages, clearly concerned about the fate of this fic. I truly appreciate your support. I must now apologize profusely for the delay. I was working full-time this summer and the little time I spent on my computer was spent checking emails and occasionally reading my subscribed fics. I really didn't realize that it would consume so much time. Also, for about a week, I was without my laptop, as it was sent off to HP for a new keypad. It works beautifully now, though. After re-reading my first chapter (finally!), I got some inspiration.

Without further ado, here it is.

Chapter 2 "A Little More Exposition"

Alicia Spinnet couldn't be sure when it happened. She should have seen it happening. It had been so gradual that she almost missed it. She had been his friend and confidant first. But now it was true. She was in love with George Weasley. But it wasn't easy. But that didn't make her love him any less.

Then he had lost everything worth having: his mother, his older brothers, his twin, and his sanity. He felt guilty over Fred's death, though she was sure somewhere deep down he knew there was nothing he could do. When he had told her he needed space, she hadn't argued, only granted it. She understood. She had already lost a friend and understood how the heart aches with the sudden loss. After three lonely, heart-wrenching weeks, he had come back to her. And she had finally shown him the physical side of her love for him. Falling asleep beside his warm body was comforting in such a dark and troubled world. She knew everything would be fine; George was her anchor.

Then he had called off several of their dates. At the absolute last minute, without a reason. He cited "family problems" later, but he often used that excuse. She wondered if there was just a fear of commitment to blame. So she let her insecurities get the best of her the next time they met up. She accused him of everything: of using her, of under-appreciating her, of not loving her. And he just gaped at her, unable to say anything to show her how wrong she was. So she left him.

The next few weeks were absolute murder. She saw brief glimpses of him at St. Mungo's as he came in with his family for counseling and check-ups. She caught him sending her a look of longing once, and almost bolted away from her patient and into his arms. But she was Alicia Spinnet, pediatric healer. And George had never uttered the words she so desperately needed to hear. _I love you_. She knew he wanted her, but she had to know he loved her.

So she threw herself into her work. She even got a bit of a promotion, getting the chance to train as an assistant department head. Healer Bennett even told her that if she kept up the good work, the department might be all hers in a few years.

All hers. All she wanted for hers alone was George Weasley. Work was just an empty substitute. After a few days spent sobbing alone at her flat, she knew she couldn't just mope around and wait. No, if she wanted George Weasley, she was going to have to go after him. If he didn't want her back, it was his loss. (Not that she actually wanted to ponder life without him…)

So she went to planning how to approach him and the subject. She saw his characteristic red hair, so different from the rest of his family's (in a lover's eyes, of course), and considered going up to him right then. But then Ginny walked up beside him and leaned her head on his shoulder, tears running down her pale face. George squeezed her gently, then they walked toward the floo point.

It would have to wait. Right now George was needed by his family more than her. He was the only one making any kind of recovery, so he had to step in and help Ron with the finances and their sister and father.

Tomorrow might be better for them all.

A/N: I know this wasn't my best, but I felt Alicia deserved her say. I guess you can assume what happens next chapter, eh?

Thanks again to all my reviewers and to my beta jwoods471, whose very presence inspired the creative process again. : D


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